The industrial PC industry is going through a time of rapid growth. This is especially true in Asia, where the market is expected to grow in excess of 30 percent during the current year. Driving this growth is strong emphasis on capital expenditure as most companies gear up for an uptake in the global economy.
The IPC export industry in Asia is dominated by companies in Taiwan. Makers in mainland China are primarily focused on the domestic market, although many companies are now looking at the export market.
There are about 100 companies in Taiwan that focus on IPC products. These companies cover a gamut of products from single board computers (SBCs), boards, embedded cards, panel PCs, industrial workstations, IPC chassis, rack-mount servers and POS systems.
Meanwhile, suppliers of IPC products in mainland China focus on IPC chassis. A handful also manufacture entry-level panel PCs. There are at present about 30 companies in mainland China capable of large-volume production for IPC products. These are clustered around Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong. Shenzhen EVOC Intelligent Technology Co. is the largest, with 2003 revenue totaling US$25 million. Around eight makers are export-driven.
Besides Shanghai and Guangdong, Beijing is a major manufacturing hub in mainland China for IPC products, accounting for 40 percent of all IPC products sold in the mainland.
However, much of the sales is dominated by Taiwan-based companies that have established factories and sales offices around the capital.
IPC makers are concerned about the sharp rise in raw material costs. Companies say prices of steel and aluminum have increased over 15 percent in Q3 of 2003 alone. They expect this price rise to continue throughout 2004. While makers say they are absorbing most of the costs for the moment, they indicate a likely increase in quotes if the raw materials' price does not stabilize.
This report covers 53 makers from Taiwan and mainland China. These companies range from large-scale manufacturers and established exporters such as Advantech Co. to firms that are very new to exporting, such as Beijing Control Industrial Computer Co. Ltd.
Companies in this report have exported to a number of countries, including the United States, United Kingdom, France, Japan, Germany, Australia, South Korea, Russia and India. Products covered include panel PCs, IPC boards/cards, IPC chassis and POS machines.
Global Sources' teams visited 25 companies and spoke with senior executives, including owners, export managers, and production and R&D managers, who discussed their 2003 performance and provided 2004 forecasts. In-depth profiles of these suppliers are featured. Of these, 15 companies are based in mainland China, while 10 have headquarters in Taiwan.
The report also contains company and production details, and contact information of 28 additional suppliers, all of which are capable of exporting.
Industry Overview
The industrial PC manufacturing industry in Asia is experiencing a boom, largely driven by a growing number of enterprises beginning to refocus on capacity build up and automation after years of cutting back on expansions. Manufacturers and exporters in Asia of the different IPC products are expected to maintain growth rates of 25 percent to 30 percent between 2003 and 2005. Worldwide, IPC products are expected to register a CAGR of around 11 percent between 2003 and 2005.
Taiwan dominates the IPC market in Asia, with most companies also driving the export business. Makers in mainland China are primarily focused on the domestic market, although as of late more companies are looking outward and refining their export business models.
There are about 100 companies in Taiwan that are active in the development and manufacture of IPC products. These companies cover a gamut of products from single board computer (SBC) boards, embedded cards, panel PCs, industrial workstations, IPC chassis, rack-mount servers, point-of-information (POI) terminals, kiosks, automated teller machines (ATMs) and point-of-sale (POS) systems.
About 10 IPC manufacturers are publicly listed companies in Taiwan. These include Advantech, ICP Electronics, Adlink Technology, Aaeon Technology, Portwell, Lanner Electronic, Ibase Technology, Boser Technology, Flytech Technology and Firich Enterprises. Revenues of Taiwan manufacturers range from over US$250 million for Advantech to less than US$5 million for the smaller firms.
Across the Taiwan Strait, mainland China is home to a smaller base of 30 IPC manufacturers, most of which are concentrating on IPC chassis. A handful also manufacture entry-level panel PCs.
Mainland China companies are clustered around Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong. Shenzhen EVOC Intelligent Technology Co. is the largest with 2003 revenue totaling US$25 million. Eight makers are focused on exports.
Beijing is a major manufacturing hub in mainland China for IPC products. The capital accounts for 40 percent of all IPC products sold on the mainland. However, the bulk of sales comes from Taiwan-based companies that have established factories and sales offices around the capital.
IPC suppliers in Beijing can be classified into three tiers. The first tier consists of technologically advanced firms from Taiwan, such as Advantech and Adlink. The second tier comprises local companies such as EVOC (Beijing), Beijing Norco Technology Co. Ltd and Beijing Control Industrial Computer Co. Ltd. The third tier of IPC suppliers comprises smaller companies that do basic assembly work on chassis and low-end panel PCs.
This market intelligence report covers 53 makers from Taiwan and mainland China. The companies range from large-scale manufacturers and established exporters such as Taiwan's Advantech to firms that are very new to exports such as Beijing-based Control.
The main export markets are the United States, United Kingdom, France, Japan, Germany, Australia, South Korea, Russia and India. Some of the major OEM and ODM clients are Agilent Technologies, Mitsubishi Electric, National Instruments, Samsung and Yuantai Technology.
Supplier Profile
Adlink Technology Inc.
Set up in 1995, Adlink Technology Inc. has made a name for itself in the field of controller products, such as those used for motor control and for telecommunications servers.
Its R&D focus has been on developing products and solutions for telecom and networking, electronic manufacturing equipment and transportation. Its product line includes carrier-grade telecom server products, controllers for manufacturing equipment and PCI EXtensions for Instrumentation (PXI) modules for testing equipment.
Adlink supplies buyers in over 40 countries through distributors in Europe and Asia, and through its branch offices in the United States, mainland China, Taiwan and Singapore.
Major OEM and ODM buyers include Agilent Technologies, Mitsubishi Electric Corp. and National Instruments Corp. The company has set up its own OEM/ODM team.
Its engineering team can develop prototypes for embedded computers, data acquisition cards, CompactPCI systems and related software packages in about three months after approval of final specifications.
Using either embedded Linux or Windows CE in its products, Adlink mainly provides hardware platforms or application platforms for system integrators or independent software vendors.
The company would provide partial solutions to system integrators, utilizing components from different suppliers, but Adlink itself is not planning to become a solution or final product provider.
Adlink employs R&D engineers in Taiwan and the United States, and an office in mainland China for technical support and services. It has also joined Intel's Advanced Telecom Computing Architecture (AdvancedTCA) and will be developing a series of IPC products based on the AdvancedTCA standard in the coming years. In addition, it has also been actively developing boards and hardware platforms that support PCI Express in order to take advantage of multimedia and high-throughput applications.
Adlink provides a series of building blocks, or modularized IPC products, for system integrators. Most of these products are based on the Intel x86 architecture and comply with international standards, such as PCI Manufacturers Group (PCIMG) or PXI.
Adlink recently introduced a series of PXI cards for measurement and testing equipment applications, targeted at IC manufacturing equipment companies or back-end cell phone testing companies. Some of its products are used for traffic control systems.
The company operates a 7,153-square-meter factory in Taipei with ISO 9001, ISO 14000 and TL9000 certifications, and manned by 528 workers. Adlink controls the whole manufacturing process — from PCB layout and design, to pilot runs on prototypes and mass production.
There is one SMT line, one DIP component insertion line and one assembly line encompassing all production processes to final packaging.
Monthly output is about 20,000 to 25,000 SBCs and embedded CPU cards, expandable to 50,000 CPU cards a month if the factory runs three shifts.
All this column of information contained in China Sourcing Reports is the result of original, independent and impartial research conducted by Global Sources analysts.
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